Best Muzzleloader Scope Reviews: Top 10 in 2017

Muzzleloading has steadily grown in popularity since the 1970s. This has led to the increase in demand for muzzleloader rifles and their accessories.

Whether you use your black power rifle for hunting or sporting, getting an accurate aim increases your chances of hitting your target. This is quite important given the fact that muzzleloaders are single shot firearms.

Sights are a good addition to any black powder rifle that’s used for short range shooting. If however you use your rifle for shooting at long range targets, the best muzzleloader scope has a better advantage over sights.

Scopes are able to zoom in on distant targets and help you account for factors such as windage and elevation.

The Top 10 Best Muzzleloader Scope Reviews

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This muzzleloader scope is built to tolerate heavy recoil from your rifle while offering fast target focus and accurate shooting. It has a 3X to 9X magnification which makes it a good choice for close range and medium range shooting.

Its 40mm diameter objective lens enhances light transmission to ensure that you always get a clear and sharp target image. The lenses are made from high quality glass that’s multicoated to provide up to 92% anti-reflection. These features enable easy target acquisition even in low light conditions.

The Nikon Buckmasters Ii scope has a BDC reticle with trajectory compensating system. The reticle has a unique ballistic see through reticles which enhances shooting accuracy at different distances. The scope is made from a single tube aluminum alloy body that’s nitrogen purged to make it rain and fog proof. The rugged design is also able to withstand heavy recoil from your muzzleloader. The scope has a generous eye relief and MOA adjustment of ¼ inch clicks at 100 yards.

Rated 4.3 out of 5 stars from 382 customers. Click the image for prices and reviews!

The Simmons 8-point truplex is a versatile scope that will mount on almost any type of rifle including muzzleloaders. It has a variable magnification power of 3X to 9X. This makes it one of the best scopes for muzzleloaders which are used for hunting or sporting.

The scope comes fitted with a 40mm diameter objective lens. The objective and other optics are fully multicoated to maximize light transmission through the scope. This ensures that you get a clear and sharp target image every time you’re out shooting.

It comes in a single tube nitrogen filled body. This makes it strong, fogproof and waterproof which are some of the important features to look for in an all weather and terrain scope.

The Simmons 8-point rifle scope has a truplex reticle. This reticle design makes it easy to acquire and focus on your target and shoot at it with accuracy. To make accurate adjustments, this scope has ¼ MOA audible click windage and elevation adjustment turrets and a quick target acquisition focus eyepiece. It also comes with a generous 3.75 inch eye relief.

Pros

Variable magnification of up to 9X makes it a good choice for close to medium range muzzleloading

Rated 4.6 out of 5 stars from 31 customers. Click the image for prices and reviews!

Nikon is one of the leading brands as far as designing quality scopes goes. With regard to the best scopes for muzzleloaders, the Nikon INLINE XR BCD 300 riflescope ranks among the top 10. Like most scopes in this review, this muzzleloader optics features variable magnification of 3X to 9X. It also features a 40mm objective lens.

One feature that makes the Nikon INLINE XR BDC 300 scope one of the best for your muzzleloader is the quality of the lenses used. Nikon uses high quality glass optics which are fully multicoated. This makes them efficient at transmitting light to ensure that you always get a clear image of your target regardless of the lighting conditions.

This scope also features the patented BDC 300 reticle. This unique reticle design features open ballistic circles which help you to focus and shoot at targets with unmatched accuracy. This reticle is easy to optimize to match the type of projectile you’re using on your muzzleloader with the spot on ballistic match technology.

The scopes body is made from aircraft grade aluminum which is lightweight and strong. The body is gas purged to make it water and fog resistant. It features a quick focus eyepiece, spring loaded instant zero reset turrets and 5 inch constant eye relief.

Rated 4.8 out of 5 stars from 7 customers. Click the image for prices and reviews!

Traditions Performance Firearms are one of the worlds leading muzzleloader firearms manufacturers. They’re also one of the leading manufacturers of the best muzzleloader scopes on the market today. Their hunter series scope has a 3X to 9X variable magnification which allows you to shoot close to medium range.

The Traditions Performance Firearms Hunter Series scope comes in a sturdy nitrogen filled body. The single tube design makes it tolerant to heavy recoil. The nitrogen filled body is resistant to fog and moisture making it a durable scope for all weather and terrain use.

This scope has a circular reticle. This simple reticle design is free from the clutter found in many competing scopes. The lack of too much detail makes it easy to find your target and make accurate shots.

Rated 4.7 out of 5 stars from 35 customers. Click the image for prices and reviews!

The Vortex Crossfire II series of scopes has a scope for any type of rifle you have. The CF2-31001 model is specially designed for muzzleloaders. It has a 2X to 7X magnification range which is a good range for close to medium range muzzleloader shots.

Unlike most muzzleloader scopes on this review which have a 40mm objective, the vortex crossfire ii has a 32mm diameter objective. While many would argue that this diameter is too small to let in adequate amounts of light, the opposite is actually true. Vortex optics compensates for the small sized objective by using high quality glass for the lenses and optics. In addition to this, all optics are fully multicoated to ensure that the scope transmits as much light as possible.

This scope has a V-Plex type of reticle. This reticle has a simple crosshair without a lot of added detail. The simplicity of the design is what makes it powerful for muzzleloaders since you won’t have to worry about lines and dots obscuring your target view. The reticle is also second focal plane.

The CF2-31001’s body is made from aircraft grade aluminum. Its body consists of a single piece tube that’s lightweight and sturdy. Its also nitrogen gas filled and o-ring sealed to make it fog, water and dustproof. The scope’s body comes fitted with capped adjusting turrets with zero reset features. A fast focus eyepiece helps to acquire your targets fast as well as eliminate parallax. The scope has a 3.9 inch eye relief and 42 to 12.6 feet field of view at 100 yards.

Pros

Strong, lightweight and durable scope body design

Variable magnification allows you to shoot at targets at different distances

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If you’re wondering what is the best muzzleloader scope for close range shooting, the Vortex Crossfire 1X24 muzzleloader scope is worth considering. It’s a simple scope that gets the job done. This is a single magnification scope meaning you won’t need to make any zooms before taking your shot. The scope has a 24mm objective lens. All of this scope’s optics are fully multicoated. This coupled with the objective lens ensures that the scope will produce a clear and sharp target image every time you’re out shooting.

The vortex crossfire 1X24 muzzleloader scope features a V-Plex reticle. This is a simple reticle that consists of fine crosshairs. The V-Plex reticle is specifically designed to enable quick target acquisition and improving on shooting accuracy.

This scope’s body is made from a single tube of aircraft grade aluminum. Its nitrogen filled and o-ring sealed to keep moisture, fog and dust from accumulating inside the scope.

Rated 4.3 out of 5 stars from 52 customers. Click the image for prices and reviews!

The Centerpoint Adventure Class riflescope is one of the best scopes for muzzleloaders from the Crosman brand. This scope has a variable magnification of 2X to 7X which is ideal for close to medium range shooting.

The Crosman Centerpoint Adventure Class scope has a 32mm objective lens. The objective lens is fully adjustable to make it easy to set for parallax free views especially at high magnifications. All optics are multicoated. This helps to maximize light transmission through the scope and reduce glare. Glare is also minimized through the sunshade fitted on the objective lens.

This muzzleloader scope comes in a compact single piece metal tube. The single tube construction makes the scope sturdy and extends its life. The scope is nitrogen filled to make it resistant to fog and moisture buildup which can damage its optics.

Crosman Centerpoint adventure class muzzleloader scopes have a mil-dot illuminated reticle. The reticle comes in green and red color options. Also included on the scope are true hunter MOA adjustment dials, flip open lens covers and quality mounting rings.

Pros

Variable magnification makes the scope ideal for close to medium range shooting

Strong and lightweight construction makes this scope ideal for use in different weather conditions and terrain

Illuminated mil-dot reticle makes it easy to focus on targets even in low light conditions

Rated 4.7 out of 5 stars from 85 customers. Click the image for prices and reviews!

The Nikon Prostaff series of scopes is one of the most popular rifle optics collections available today. Within this series is the shotgun hunter model that has 2X to 7X magnification. This is the ideal magnification range for muzzleloading.

This scope has a 32mm objective lens. Since many muzzleloaders aren’t designed for long range shooting, the 32mm objective is just about enough to transmit sufficient amounts of light to enable close and medium range target focus. The objective lens is further complemented by high quality multicoated glass optics which reduces glare and improves light transmission.

The scope’s body is made from quality polymer. Its gas purged to make it water and fogproof. The strong polymer construction makes this scope tolerant to heavy recoil or accidental knocks. The body has built in capped zero reset turrets which make it easy to make adjustments while out in the field. A quick focus eyepiece also makes adjusting for parallax free views easy.

The Nikon Prostaff shotgun hunter muzzleloader scope has a BDC 200 reticle. This reticle features see through ballistic circles which make it easier to estimate target distance and improve on shot accuracy.

Pros

High quality multicoated lenses and 32mm objective ensure you get clear and sharp images

Variable magnification allows you to shoot both close and medium range easily

Light, strong and all weather design is durable

Generous 3.8 inch eye relief protects your brow from knocking against the scope if you’re using a light, angled or heavy recoil muzzleloader

Cons

The scope doesn’t come inclusive of mounting rings which should be bought separately

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars from 2 customers. Click the image for prices and reviews!

Truglo is probably best known for their sights. However, the brand has its assortment of firearm optics which includes the Tru-Brite Xtreme series of scopes. One of the best scopes for muzzleloaders from this brand is the Tru-Brite Xtreme 3-12X44mm scope. With a 3X to 12X variable magnification, this scope easily beats many competing optics which offer magnifications of up to 9X. This makes this scope a good option if you engage in close, medium and long range muzzleloading.

This scope has a large 44mm diameter objective lens. This is also larger compared to the 40mm offered by many muzzleloader scopes. The large objective and all other optics are fully multicoated. This ensures that the scope is transmitting as much light as possible to give you a clear and sharp target image even in low light conditions.

The Truglo Tru-Brite Xtreme scope has a dual illuminated BDC reticle in red and green color options. It features an adjustable rheostat which helps you adjust reticle brightness easily. The reticle can be easily calibrated to suit your specific projectile. These features make the scope accurate and easy to focus with even in low light conditions.

It’s made from a single tube of aircraft grade aluminum that’s strong and lightweight. A speed focus eyepiece, side focus and durable leaf spring turret are attached to the body for easy adjustments. The body is water, fog and shockproofed.

Rated 4.6 out of 5 stars from 76 customers. Click the image for prices and reviews!

The Bushnell Banner Dusk and Dawn is one of the common entrants in many muzzleloader scope reviews. It’s a well built scope with a variable magnification of 3X to 9X.

This scope is fitted with a 40mm objective lens and multicoated optics. These reduce glare and reflection while maximizing on the amount of light transmitted through the scope. This way, you’re assured of clear images even in low light conditions.

This scope has the multi-x reticle which makes it easy to estimate target distance and shoot with accuracy. Its body is 100% fogproof and rainproof which extends its life. It has a fast focus eyepiece which enables easy parallax free view setting. This scope also features 6 inches eye relief and ¼ inch MOA adjustments at 100 yards.

Pros

Strong, lightweight and all weather construction makes it suitable for all weather and terrain use

What to consider when buying the best muzzleloader scopes

Your black powder rifle design

Muzzleloader rifles come in three main designs. The rarest type is the historic replicas which are designed in the same way as antiques used centuries ago. The second types are replica hunters. These fall between replicas and modern rifles. They usually come fitted with sights and can accommodate muzzleloader scopes. The final type is the in-line muzzleloader. This is the most common and popular type. This type has a modern design and uses modern projectiles. These too accommodate muzzleloader scopes.

Your shooting range

Muzzleloaders can be used for short, medium and long range shooting. If you’re only interested in a scope that will help you shoot a few yards out, single magnification with a small size objective lens diameter scope will do just fine. If however you’re a hardcore muzzleloading enthusiast who shoots at targets at different distances, varying magnification and a larger objective lens are recommended. Other important features you’ll need to look at when buying the best scope for muzzleloader include:

The scope design and construction

The reticle design

Lens quality and coatings

Eye relief

Focus, windage, parallax and elevation adjustments

Scope tube width

Cost among others

Final Words

If you’re looking for the best muzzleloader scope, there are many different factors which you should consider before settling on the right one. There are many quality muzzleloader scopes to choose from. As you might have noticed; many of these scopes fall within the same magnification range and objective lens size. This means that you’ll need to take a close look at the small features that differentiate these scopes such as the reticle design, body construction, focusing and adjustment turrets as well as price.

Each scope is unique in its own way and could only work best when mounted on a particular muzzleloader. With that said you can now choose one among the best scopes for muzzleloaders reviewed and match it to your shooting needs and type of firearm you’re using.

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